Tag Archives: Dushanbe

I am writing one more post about the remainder of our time in Tajikistan, there are a few things that are worth writing about. After our climb described in the previous post was over, there was sadly no time left over to climb anything else – especially given that the walk out to base camp from our climb took 2 days due to the need to cross the Bozbaital river very early on to avoid mishap. A pity, but the reality is that attempting to climb a 6,000m peak without acclimatizing to roughly 5,500m first would have been foolish. Better safe than sorry.

After arriving back at basecamp to find everything intact we had a few days to pack up and carry everything back to where we had arranged to be picked up, and have a closer look at the Kokuybel mudflats. Our lift back to Murgab turned up early (they arrived at 10am-ish, when we hadn’t been expecting them until 1pm). Several minor breakdowns later, we arrived back in Murgab mid-afternoon. We spent the remainder of the afternoon drinking tea and the evening eating plov. Plov is the national dish of Tajikistan (and Uzbekistan), it is very good and is also very cheap to make. It is steamed rice with some meat, carrots and onions, all fairly spicy and usually with a few condiments. http://tinyurl.com/ondza6m is a representative selection of images of this delicious dish! After our time in the wilderness we were certainly in the mood for eating.

Minor breakdown on Pamir plateau. A very long way from anywhere.

Next morning we were ready to visit the area in town where vehicles driving to Khorog depart and negotiate the first stage of our journey home. We shared with a French couple but still did not get that good a price. Getting a good price for journey from Murgab – Khorog seems much harder than for the journey from Khorog – Dushanbe. For the latter journey we got a good price on both outward and return trips. We sat down to yet another day of stunning scenery, interspersed with long waits at military checkpoints, as we crossed the Pamir plateau back to Khorog. Our driver demonstrated his proficiency at multi-tasking by getting out a passport-sized photo of the Aga Khan IV and wedging the photo in place by the sun visor so that he could do his prayers while he was driving.

Some good hills overlooking the Gunt river en-route back to Khorog.

Our driver, like most people in Gorno-Badakhshan province (except maybe the Kyrgyz in Murgab and the north) was part of the Nizari Shia Ismaili denomination of Islam. The Nizari Shia Ismailis are a fascinating group. There are about 15 million Nizari Shia Ismailis worldwide, with particularly large numbers in parts of central Asia and Africa. The Nizari Shia Ismailis worship the Aga Khan IV, a descendant of the prophet Mohammed. The Aga Khan IV is a business magnate living in France, who founded and operates the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), a large NGO providing healthcare, education, and other development work in those parts of the world where the Nizari Shia Ismailis live.

Gorno-Badakhshan appears heavily dependent on the activities of the AKDN, for instance in running the health service there, and in opening the University in Khorog. It is hard not to be impressed by how they have a functioning society in Gorno-Badakhshan despite so many obstacles – a government that cares little for them, proximity to Afghanistan, the legacy of the civil war and other conflicts, a harsh environment (especially in winter) and poor transport links. That they have achieved this appears (to the non-expert outside observer, at least) to be a testament to their shared religious beliefs and the work of the AKDN.

Heavy traffic near Shurabad.

We arrived in Khorog in good time and returned to Dushanbe the following day. Staying with friends in Dushanbe (thanks!), we were able to weigh ourselves. I had lost about 7 kg on the expedition, Jonny wasn’t sure how much he weighed before we started out. We ate quite a lot of shashlik to try and rectify the weight loss, and went for a ride on an extremely old ferris wheel to gain an aerial view of the world’s largest teahouse (http://www.eurasianet.org/node/67218) under construction.

Oh, ok… Is it safe there?
Yeah it is hopefully. I mean there was a civil war for much of the ’90s, and last year it all kicked off again, but we’re pretty optimistic we can get in, get up, and get out in one piece.

So why are you going?
A few reasons, exploring a culturally alien country, the lure of unclimbed mountains, but mainly the massive boost our egos will get from the subsequent publicity.

Isn’t it going to be really hot there?
Yep, it’s high summer, in Dushanbe it’ll be around 35 degrees in the shade.

Isn’t it going to be really cold there?
Probably, we can’t say how cold for sure but the mountains reach over 6000m, they are snow covered all year and there are glaciers in the valleys nearby.

You’ll be hiring Sherpas then?
Sherpas live in Nepal, so no, unless any of them are holidaying nearby.

What about porters, to carry all your things?
Unlikely. We hope to hire a horse or donkey off local nomads to help with the walk in to base camp, but it’s quite possible the terrain will be totally unsuitable and we’ll end up with all the weight on our backs.

This all sounds like hard work.
You’re not wrong, but pain is weakness leaving the body. Well, according to all PE teachers anyway.

Hmm, when are you home again?
Thursday 15th August, though we will be finished in the mountains a week before that.

As the date of our departure grows ever nearer, perhaps it is time to actually tell you when that date will be, along with the juicy details of our long planned expedition.

On Saturday 20th July we will board the first of our flights, from Manchester to Istanbul. Once there we will have approximately 23 hours for riot-dodging and tourism, then jetting off again to Dushanbe, where we will arrive at nearly 4am on Monday morning.

Our first task will be to get over our jetlag and acclimatise to the heat of our new surroundings (peaking around 36 deg C). Our time is limited, so we will head straight for the local bazaar and stock up on all the rice, lentils and pasta we need to keep us sustained at base camp.

Along the Dushanbe–Khorugh highway (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Next is a long, long day in a shared taxi along the Pamir Highway,to the city of Khorog in Gorno-Badakhshan province.

As the crow flies the distance is 160 miles, however the mountainous terrain means the journey is actually double that, at 321 miles. The poor condition of the roads and long uphills will add even more time to the journey. We hope to make it to Khorog before the sun rises the next day…

View of Khorog from the Botanical Gardens (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In Khorog we hope to stay at the Pamir Lodge (hot water!) before continuing in another taxi to Murgab. This journey is shorter, and the temperature will be more amenable as we head higher into the Pamir mountains. The altitude will probably have some effect, as the road hits 4300m at Koi-Tezek Pass.

Murgab is a small town, only growing at all thanks to its position at a crossroads, where trading routes from China, Kyrgyzstan and the capital meet.

Again we will be moving on quickly, taking the Pamir Highway north for 65 miles, then sneaking round the back of the mountains on dirt roads. Our aim is the mouth of the Bozbaital valley, where we hope to hire a horse or donkey from local nomads, to speed up the walk up the valley to base camp. If there are no nomads, or the valley is impassable to horses, then we will have to take the weight ourselves.